TOUCH SCREEN WATCH

• US 20120099406A1
• Filed: 10/25/2010
• Published: 04/26/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 10/25/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sunshine Time Inc. (Time Watch Investments Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Advance Watch Company Limited (Time Watch Investments Ltd.)
• Inventors: Lau, Wai Cheong, Tse, Chun Wai
• Granted Patent: US 8,824,245 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 368/69
• CPC Class Codes: G04G 21/08 Touch switches specially adapted for time-pieces
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/163 Wearable computers, e.g. on a belt

Abstract

A wristwatch includes a case and a corresponding crystal, and an integrated circuit sized to be received with the case. The wristwatch has a first, second, third, and fourth capacitive touch sensor adapted to be located beneath the crystal and within the case when the wristwatch is assembled. The capacitive touch sensors are in electrical communication with the integrated circuit to control operation of the wristwatch. The capacitive touch sensors are located adjacent to the periphery of the crystal and are spaced apart.

Claims

1. A wristwatch comprising:

a case and a crystal;

an integrated circuit received within the case; and

a first and a second capacitive touch sensor located beneath the crystal and in electrical communication with the integrated circuit to control operation of the wristwatch;

wherein the capacitive touch sensors provide four inputs to the integrated circuit to control operation of the watch, the first input through a user activating the first sensor, the second input through the user activating the second sensor, the third input through the user sweeping along the crystal and activating the first sensor prior to the second sensor within a predetermined time limit, and the fourth input through the user sweeping along the crystal and activating the second sensor prior to the first sensor within the predetermined time limit.

2. The wristwatch of claim 1 further comprising a third and a fourth capacitive touch sensor, wherein the first, second, third and fourth sensors are spaced apart.

3. The wristwatch of claim 2 wherein the capacitive touch sensors provide a fifth input to the integrated circuit to control operation of the watch, the fifth input through the user sweeping along the crystal and activating the first sensor, the second sensor, and the third sensor in sequence within another predetermined time limit.

4. A wristwatch comprising:

a case having a side and a crystal;

an integrated circuit received within the case; and

a first, second, third, and fourth capacitive touch sensor located beneath the crystal and within the case, the capacitive touch sensors in electrical communication with the integrated circuit to control operation of the wristwatch;

wherein the capacitive touch sensors are located adjacent to the periphery of the crystal and are spaced apart from each other.

5. The wristwatch of claim 4 wherein the four capacitive touch sensors are generally equally spaced apart along the periphery of the watch.

6. The wristwatch of claim 4 further comprising a tactile button positioned on the side of the case.

7. The wristwatch of claim 4 wherein the crystal is generally circular.

8. The wristwatch of claim 4 wherein the crystal is generally rectangular.

9. The wristwatch of claim 4 wherein the generally rectangular crystal includes convex sides.

10. The wristwatch of claim 4 further comprising

a battery connected to the integrated circuit to provide power for operation of the wristwatch;

four detector circuits, each detector circuit connected to the integrated circuit and to a respective on one of the capacitive sensors.

11. The wristwatch of claim 10 further comprising an elastomeric connector for electrically connecting the capacitive sensor to the detector circuit.

12. The wristwatch of claim 11 wherein the detector circuit determines if the sensor is being actuated by a user by comparing a reference capacitive measurement to a capacitive measurement when a capacitive field adjacent to the sensor is disturbed by the user.

13. The wristwatch of claim 12 wherein a sliding input is determined by the integrated circuit when receiving a touch input from one of the capacitive sensors and a second touch input from an adjacent one of the capacitive sensors within a predetermined time limit.

14. A wristwatch comprising:

a case and a corresponding crystal; and

an integrated circuit sized to be received with the case, the integrated circuit having a switch, the switch providing for both use with either a four button watch or a five button watch;

wherein the watch is a four button watch having four capacitive touch sensors located beneath the crystal and adjacent to the periphery of the crystal, the touch sensors in electrical communication with the integrated circuit;

wherein the watch is a five button watch having four capacitive touch sensors located beneath the crystal and adjacent to the periphery of the crystal, the touch sensors in electrical communication with the integrated circuit, and a tactile button located adjacent to the case and in communication with the integrated circuit.